Ann and John

Hi Everyone,
Has anyone heard of the Visa Bureau in London, and are the any good? Certainly when I spoke to them they came across as very helpful. They charge about £450 plus VAT for both my OH and I to apply for the Parent visa and they say they will tell us how to get all the necessary paperwork required and then submit it to NZ immigration. It all seems quite good but I'm just scared that we will get 'seen off' and to be honest all we want is to get to NZ to be with our family and enjoy our retirement with them but all the forms just bother me incase I do something wrong. Would I be silly to use this company ? Any ideas from anyone would be most appreciated. Thanks . Regards Ann

BEVS

No , you wouldn't be silly if you are worried about the forms & are scared your application will be rejected for some reason.

I checked the NZAMI site for you and Andrew Harwood of Visa Bureau is listed , so at least that is something.

I'd say £450 quid seems quite cheap but I do wonder if this is just for some form filling and you will be doing the running around anyway.

How good he or Visa Bureau is at crossing the T's and dotting the i's when it comes to putting together a comprehensive , watertight application, I just do not know. Certainly Visa Bureau seem to want to deal with many countries so I wonder if he is a specialist or not when it comes to NZ immigration and, in particular, the vagaries of NZIS.

Could we all help you & your family with these forms?

Do you have any niggles at the back of your mind that makes you feel the application could hit a sticky patch? I know you had some concerns over your BMI for instance. If you have, then you may do better to spend a bit more on a proven specialist . You could find one by contacting NZAMI at the above link.

Ann and John

Hi Bev,
Thank you so much for all this info. It is kind of you to ask if you could all perhaps help us. The thing is I just dont know where to start but I was told that we dont need to do the 'expression of interest' thing because one of my sons in NZ is going to sponser us, is this so ? What do we need to do to start the ball rolling if we didn't use this company? Regards Ann

Ann and John

Hi Bev, I have already said thanks for this but I think I have sent the message to cyber space, haven't a clue where I sent it !! so thanks again.
I was told that I dont need to do the 'expression of interest ' thing as one of my sons in NZ is sponsering us on the Parent Visa, is this the case? Where do we start if we dont use this company? Regards Ann

Ambrosian

Hello Ann and John

Cannot help you on the Visa Bureau subject but back on 25 August I wrote a thread on sponsorship by our son. We too are going through the process of applying for residency and are retirees. You may find something of interest in there. If you put into the search for Ambrosian's threads (I think it is under the heading Sponsorship) you will find it there.

One thing I will say is that be prepared for the process to take some time. See my thread on timings. To date, my husband has been told he has an acceptable standard of health and I have just put in my consultant's report. I hope that will be the end to all the health queries. If we had to do things again, I would definitely go straight down the private consultant's route to confirm your health and not mess around with GP blood tests/appointments and letters stating you are healthy. I have lost track of how many blood tests I have had to check on my cholesterol levels!! 3 months down the line, it is under the magic 5 number at 4.4. At the end of the day, from our experience, NZ medical assessor wants to hear it from a specialist, not a GP.

If I can help on any specifics that we have encountered, please just ask. At the outset, it does appear pretty daunting but if you approach things methodically, it will work out in the long term.

All the best.

BEVS

Here is the thread that Ambrosian talks about - click the bold type to open the link

Shirl, Ambrosian and Hippygran all seem to have applied via the family sponsorship route.

For anyone looking in to help, THIS is the intro post by Ann and John.


edited here....
I hope you don't mind but I am going to alter the title of your thread to include about Family Sponsorship route. That way those that know first hand about this will maybe take a look.

Ann and John

Thanks so much everyone, I dont feel quite so alone now. I will keep you all posted. Regards Ann